Nato delays any 'no-fly zone'

Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi is ready to unleash the full might of his forces to crush a three-week-old insurrection, his son said on Thursday as warplanes and tanks struck at the country's rebel-controlled east. "It's time for liberation. It's time for action. We are moving now," Saif al-Islam told Reuters in an interview. "Time is out now...we gave them two weeks (for negotiations)."
As he spoke, Qadhafi's forces intensified their counter-attack on the insurgent heartland, bombarding rebel positions in the oil port of Ras Lanuf. Warplanes also hit Brega, another rebel-held oil hub further east. State television said the army had driven the rebels out of Ras Lanuf, just behind their frontline but the rebels denied it.
Qadhafi forces and rebels were locked in street fighting in the western town of Zawiya, close to Tripoli, which has changed hands several times in recent days. Residents described scenes of carnage, with woman and children among the dead.
With momentum appearing to turn against the rebels, who had initially hoped to charge up the coast and into the capital Tripoli, foreign governments held more meetings where they again called for Qadhafi to surrender. But they came no closer to deciding on action to rein him in. The United States and Nato's head expressed doubt over the wisdom of imposing "no-fly zones" without full international backing and a legal justification. In a further dent to rebel morale, US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said in Washington that Qadhafi was "in this for the long haul" and was likely to prevail.
The London-educated Saif al-Islam Qadhafi, previously seen as a potential reformer, said in the interview that Libya would defeat the rebels even if Western powers intervened. "We will never ever give up. We will never ever surrender. This is our country. We fight here in Libya," he said, speaking in a compound in Tripoli. "Libya is not a piece of cake." He described rebels fighting to end Qadhafi's 41-year rule as terrorists and armed gangsters and said thousands of Libyans had volunteered to fight them.
BOMBARDED FROM AIR AND SEA More than 500 km (300 miles) east of Qadhafi's stronghold, warplanes and gunboats bombarded rebels in Ras Lanuf. Missiles crashed near a Libyan Emirates Oil Refinery Company building. Rebel fighters said Ras Lanuf's residential district, including the hospital area, weathered a bombardment and one said government forces were advancing into the area, backed by rocket fire from sea, air and ground.
Rebels also reported an air strike on Brega, another oil port 90 km (50 miles) east of Ras Lanuf, indicating that Qadhafi loyalists had not only halted a westwards insurgent push in its tracks but were making inroads into their eastern rearguard. They fired anti-aircraft guns towards warplanes and rockets out to sea towards navy ships, without visible effect.
State television said rebels were ousted on Thursday from the port and airport of Es Sider, another oil terminus about 40 km (25 miles) up the coast west of Ras Lanuf. The poorly-equipped rebels conceded they were struggling to hold ground against the government's vastly superior firepower. "(Qadhafi) might take it. With planes, tanks, mortars and rockets, he might take it," said rebel fighter Basim Khaled. "A no-fly zone would be great," said rebel fighter Salem al-Burqy, echoing the view of many comrades.
STREET FIGHTING In the west, Qadhafi's troops laid siege to try to starve out insurgents clinging to parts of the shattered city of Zawiyah after see-saw battles this week. One fighter said rebels had retaken the heart of Zawiyah from the army overnight. Authorities have kept journalists away from the town, about 50 km (30 miles) west of Tripoli.
The rebels received a boost in their quest for international legitimacy when France recognised their national council. An aide to President Nicolas Sarkozy said an ambassador would go to Benghazi and a Libyan envoy would be received in Paris.
But European Union foreign ministers could not agree at a meeting in Brussels over whether the bloc as a whole should recognise the Benghazi-based rebel movement, although they did decide to tighten sanctions on Qadhafi's government. In separate talks, Nato foreign ministers discussed imposing a "no-fly" zone over Libya to stop the government using jets and helicopters against the outgunned rebels.
URGING BUT NO ACTION But Nato Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said this could happen only with a demonstrable need, a clear legal basis and firm regional support, not all of which now apply. This would require evidence of war crimes against civilians. "We strongly urge the government of Libya to stop violence and allow a peaceful transition to democracy," he said. Despite rebel appeals for foreign air power to guard the shies, no quick action had been expected as Nato leaders want broader UN endorsement for political cover.